Derivation of a Reduced IL-6 Signal Transduction Model

The main aim of this work was to derive a reduced model for IL-6 signal transduction that can accurately predict the concentrations of the major proteins involved. A model with 66 differential equations and 115 parameters was used as a starting point for this investigation. Sensitivity analysis was performed to determine which parts of the model should reduced as it would not be possible to verify the values of the reaction parameters for these parts. A new model structure was derived based upon this analysis and the parameters of the reduced model were estimated from simulation data. The newly developed model only contains 11 differential equations and 16 parameters and is able to adequately predict the dynamic behavior of key proteins of the signal transduction pathway. As a last step, the model was updated and verified using available experimental data.